Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau

Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau
Agency overview
Formed 1952
Preceding agency
Jurisdiction Government of Singapore
Headquarters 2 Lengkok Bahru, Singapore 159047
Agency executives
  • Wong Hong Kuan [1][2], Director
  • Denis Tang [3], Director-designate taking office 1st Oct
Parent agency Prime Minister's Office
Website www.cpib.gov.sg

Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (Abbreviation: CPIB; Chinese: 贪污调查局; Malay: Biro Siasatan Pencegahan Rasuah) is a government agency in Singapore which investigates and prosecutes corruption in the public and private sectors. It was established by the British colonial government in 1952 and sited in the Attorney-General's Chambers. When Singapore attained self-government in 1959, the nation's first prime minister Lee Kuan Yew moved it to the Prime Minister's Office.

Although the primary function is to investigate corruption, it is empowered to investigate other criminal cases in which corruption may be involved.

Incorporated within the Prime Minister's Office (PMO), the Bureau is headed by a director who reports directly to the Prime Minister. CPIB is therefore independent from the Singapore Police Force and other government agencies to prevent any undue interference in its investigations.

It also has the utmost right, similar to the Singapore's Internal Security Department, to detain suspects of corrupt practices without legal proceedings.

Overview

The Prevention of Corruption Act[4] provides extensive powers to CPIB in the investigation of corruption, including:

  • The power to investigate not just the suspect, but also the suspect's family or agents and to examine their financial and other records.
  • The power to require the attendance of witnesses for interview.
  • The power to investigate any other seizable offence which is disclosed in the course of a corruption investigation.

As of January 2015, a review of the Prevention of Corruption Act and a new One-Stop Corruption Reporting Centre are in the works.[5]

Investigations carried out by the CPIB are habitually completed efficiently and with limited public exposure. High profile probes are rare. In July 2013, the Prime Minister's Office disclosed that CPIB opened 39 cases involving public officers each year for investigation over the last five years — making up about one in five of all cases handled. Among the investigations involving public officers, two-thirds led to prosecution or disciplinary action.[6]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "New Chief Executive Officer for the Singapore Workforce Development Agency". Archived from the original on January 29, 2014. Retrieved 8 Sep 2014.
  2. ↑ "CPIB director to be replaced over supervisory lapse". Yahoo! News. Retrieved 25 September 2015.
  3. ↑ https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/cpib-new-director-october-denis-tang-ica-10637514
  4. ↑ Cap. Prevention of Corruption Act
  5. ↑ "More anti-corruption measures in the works: PM". Retrieved 13 January 2015.
  6. ↑ 1 in 5 CPIB Probes Involved Public Servants Today, 25 July 2013
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